I’m not sure where this list originated from, but it was forwarded to me in email.  These are truly wise words.  I just had to share it.  Enjoy your day.

 

1. A day without sunshine is like night.

 

2. On the other hand, you have different fingers. 

 

3. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.

 

4. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.

 

5. Remember, half the people you know are below average.

 

6. He who laughs last, thinks slowest. 

 

7. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.

 

8. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese in the trap.

 

9. Support bacteria. They’re the only culture some people have.

 

10. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

 

11. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.

 

12. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments. 

 

13. How many of you believe in psycho-kinesis? Raise my hand.

 

14. OK, so what’s the speed of dark?

 

15. When everything is coming your way, you’re in the wrong lane.

 

16. Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.

 

17. How much deeper would the ocean be without sponges?

 

18. Eagles may soar, but weasels don’t get sucked into jet engines 

 

19. What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?

 

20. Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?

 

21. Inside every older person is a younger person wondering, ‘What the hell happened?’

 

22. Just remember — if the world didn’t suck, we would all fall off.

 

23. Light travels faster than sound. That’s why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

 

 

 

 

Posted: June 16th, 2008 under Uncategorized.
Comments: 5

As an adult, we remember too many things and think too much.  We worry, become anxious and fearful.  We tend to remember the bad stuff and forget the good stuff.  But take a moment to look at life through a child’s eyes.

 

A child wakes up in the morning and wants to run and play.

A child looks up in the sky and imagines faces and cats and hippos in the clouds.

A child picks a bouquet of dandelion flowers and gives them to his mother.

A child sings happy songs.

A child steps in all the rain puddles as she walks down the street.

A child sits quietly and plays in the mud with his mother’s baking dishes.

A child enjoys playing baseball, soccer, and other group sports.

A child eats peanut butter off a spoon.

A child jumps on a bed.

A child learns language so she can talk to others.

A child crawls around on hands and knees.

A child oo’s and aa’s at the beauty of nature.

A child likes to stop and pet a dog or cat, their fur is so soft.

A child builds sand castles on the beach.

A child collects sea shells on vacation.

A child stands on his head to experience the world upside down.

A child smiles at friendly faces.

 

So for today, let’s look at life through a child’s eyes.  Let’s go through our day with a sense of awe and wonder.  Let’s be present to each moment and rejoice in it’s beauty.

 

Posted: June 14th, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment.
Comments: 3

I woke up early this morning with a feeling of gratitude.

 

I have so much to be thankful for, as a human being, as a woman, a wife and mother, an American.  I sit here sipping my tea, looking all around me.  As an American, I have my freedom and live in a beautiful country, free to vote, to wear what I want, to choose the food I want to eat, free to do what I want in life.  As a wife and mother, I have a family to love and family that loves me.  My immediate family is small, yet the number of my extended family and friends is large and grows with each passing day.  As a woman, I am grateful to have the ability to bear children.  As a human being, I am thankful for my compassion, kindness and love, for my ability to think and reason and make my own decisions.

 

My gratitude also extends to the material world.  I am grateful for the home that shelters me from the weather, clothes to cover my body, furniture to sit comfortably, food that is nourishing and plentiful.  I read the newspaper and listen to the news hearing reports of so many people living in poverty, without food and shelter.  Countries are at war, destroying what little these people have.  There are so many who are out of work and don’t have the money for basic staples.  I do what I can to help, but the need is so great.

 

I glance outside at the green leaves of the magnolia tree, the lilies, petunias, and ornamental grass.  The sky is overcast in early morning fog, yet I know that to the west is the ocean, to the east are mountains.  Down the road there are rivers and lakes, waterfalls and streams.  The sun will appear later today, the moon will rise later this evening and fill the sky with millions of stars.  I am so grateful for this beautiful planet and this wondrous universe.

 

What are you grateful for?

 

Posted: June 11th, 2008 under Stained Glass, mindfulness, present moment.
Comments: 1

If you take the time to stop and look around, you’ll discover that you can learn a lot about life from nature.

 

Gaze at the clouds.  Watch them float by.  Each cloud is different.  Each day, the number of clouds are different.  Clouds are constantly changing, just like everything in life.

 

Smell the early morning jasmine.  It’s scent can be detected several feet away and linger in the air.  The jasmine and other natural scents remind us to take a deep breath.

 

Listen to the birds singing in the trees.  Their songs remind us to stop and listen and enjoy the moment.

 

Notice the morning glory on the vine.  It’s petals close at night and open to the sunlight.  The morning glory reminds us to get a good night’s sleep and to enjoy the day.

 

The river flows slow and smooth.  It reminds us of our journey in life.  Look forward, appreciate the present, don’t worry about the past.

 

Every beautiful tree grows tall, but bends due to the way it was planted or forces put upon it like a constant wind.  The trees mind us that each of us grows up differently - different parents, different education, different circumstances.  Yet each one of us is beautiful in our own way.

 

I know that there are many other ways that nature shows us how to live – what is your favorite comparison?

 

Posted: June 6th, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment.
Comments: 2

Thank you for this beautiful day.

 

I woke up early by my standards, 5:15 a.m., and felt a lightness in my heart.  I dressed, made a cup of tea, and headed out to Mt. Soledad for a sunrise meditation. 

 

The sky, mottled with gray skies, did not afford the opportunity to view the sunrise, but my skin drank in the moisture of early morning dew.  My ears were treated to silence, that rare sound we so often do not  hear.  My eyes took in an air show courtesy of a flock of large black crows.  The moisture in the air brought out the pine and sage scents surrounding me.  My fingers flew over my mala beads as I quietly repeated my mantra.  The taste of green tea on my tongue warmed my mouth.

 

This past week has been chaos in my house, but today I begin again, without judgment, without worry.  I pay attention to my heart.  I pay attention to my body.  I pay attention to the beautiful world around me.  Living in the present moment keeps me at peace.  Living in the present moment allows me to be thankful for the preciousness of today.

 

So, how are you living in the present moment today?

 

 

Posted: May 21st, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment.
Comments: 3

Chaos is swirling around me, sucking me into mental chatter and stress.  My walls will be opened in a few days.  The plastic pipes replaced with copper.  Wallboard dust will swirl throughout the house.  It’s also a good time to go one step further, remodel the guest bathroom.  The last time, and every other time in the past that we remodeled a part of our house, my body was consumed with stress.  But I have an opportunity to not repeat the patterns of the past.  I know how to be calm.  Stay in the present moment.  Even when my mind is filled with bathroom vanities, sinks, tile selection, and tub enclosures, I can be present with what I am doing.  I can make one decision and move on to the next.

 

I start my morning in peace.  Sitting on my patio, I gaze into the manmade stream that runs through our condo complex.  The water is clear.  The palm fronds reflect in the calm water.  A slight breeze passes and ripples the water, giving sound to the leaves on the surrounding bushes and trees.  A delicate petunia bloom sways.  The lavender offers up its scent.  I am present.

 

I hope every enjoyed their Mother’s Day.

 

Posted: May 12th, 2008 under mindfulness, present moment.
Comments: 4

A mantram is a word or phrase with spiritual meaning.  I learned mantram in my yoga class.  I repeat Om mam everyday. These are Sanskrit words that translate to God heart. I began sayingthis mantram after my heart attack in 2006.  I say these two words 1,080 times in the morning.  I use mala beads (108 beads strungtogether in a necklace) to keep track of the count.  It starts my day in a quiet reflective mood that keeps mecalm the rest of the day. 

 

I just came across a item in a local health newsletter.  Researchers confirmed what I alreadyknew.  Mantram repetition is helpful for managing stress, emotions other than stress, insomnia and unwantedthoughts.  The article by JillBormann can be accessed online from the Journal of Advanced Nursing.

 

 

Posted: May 3rd, 2008 under Stained Glass, heart disease, meditation, yoga.
Comments: 5

As I drink my cup of of sereni-tea, I’m reading more teabag wisdom.  Here are two to get you through the weekend.

 

“Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens.” Carl Gustav Jung

 

When I was younger, I dreamed a lot.  I dreamed about graduating college, dreamed of my ideal career, dreamed of marriage and having a family, dreamed of buying a home, and a car.  While I managed to accomplish most of my dreams, I found only temporary satisfaction in the accomplishments.  It felt like riding a rollercoaster, a series of ups and downs.  I’ve heard many say “That’s what life is all about.”  But for a long time, deep inside, I felt something missing.  When I finally began to look inside myself, to see and feel the essence of me, I found the dream that had always eluded me.  Peace.

 

“When the heart is at ease, the body is healthy.” Chinese Proverb

 

This second teabag saying goes hand-in-hand with Carl Jung.  As I went through life on my rollercoaster, I not only rushed through each day, but was filled with negative emotions – anxiety, depression, stress, anger.  At the same time, my body reacted with back pain, osteoporosis, arthritis, heartburn, heart disease, indigestion.  After looking inside myself, letting go of expectations, forgiving others and myself, my aches and pains diminished.  My body became healthier.  I no longer hold onto negative emotions.  I began living in the present moment.  I became mindful of my thoughts, my actions, my words.

 

So as you go about your day, I encourage you to find a quiet space.  Take some time.  Look within and see what happens.

 

Have a great day.

 

Posted: May 2nd, 2008 under Stained Glass, mindfulness, present moment, yoga.
Comments: 2

Happy May 1 everyone. Wikipedia tells us that May Day is synonymous with International Workers’ Day, or Labour Day, which celebrates the social and economic achievements of the labor movement. As a day of celebration, however, the holiday has ancient origins and can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times. Many of these customs are due to May Day being a cross-quarter day, meaning that it falls approximately halfway between a solstice and an equinox.

 

May Day in San Diego was welcomed in by the Morris Dancers at sunrise up on Mt. Soledad.   They kicked their heels in the pre-dawn as they rang their bells strapped around their ankles, wearing yellow, green, and blue vests.  They waved handkerchiefs, and sticks as they danced to harmonicas and violins.

 

Today was busy at the cross.  Not only were the Morris Dancers romping in the grass overlooking La Jolla Shores, but this morning brought a group of worshippers out for National Prayer Day.  Several joggers, dog walkers, and early morning exercisers were also on hand to take in the sunrise as it rose behind the clouds and graced us with a pink streak as the clouds separated.

 

What an energetic start to a new day.  How are you celebrating May 1?

 

Posted: May 1st, 2008 under present moment.
Comments: none

Last night I saw the play 33 Variations.  It’s a fictional story surrounding the composition of Ludwig von Beethoven’s  thirty-three variations of Anton Diabelli’s waltz.  It was a wonderful play written and directed by Moises Kaufman.  But while some might view the play from the perspective of seeing one of Beethoven’s works come alive, I viewed it as a process of change and living in the present moment.

 

One the surface, Beethoven began with a simple waltz by Diabelli and transformed it into thirty-three different musical works of art.  During the play, we discovered the process of composing a piece of music, showing through Beethoven’s sketchbooks how he would draft a set of notes in pencil, then pen over a revision until he arrived at the final product.  In addition to depicting the music, Kaufman also portrayed the life of Beethoven as he descended into deafness, the process of a maestro at the height of fame plunging into the depths of illness.  Kaufman blended the past with the present day by including a musicologist sleuth, diagnosed with a debilitating illness, who’s out to discover why Beethoven was so obsessed with these musical variations.

 

The play made me pause and think about the process of life, how nothing stays the same, how everything changes, yet change happens day by day, moment by moment. 

 

At the macro level, we are born and grow.  At each stage of our life, the process continues.  We learn.  We work.  We love.  We experience the world around us.  Each year, each week, each day, each breath, is a new beginning.  As we focus more closely on our life, we can examine our career, and home life and see how each successive event in our live transforms us into the person we are today. 

 

As a writer, I think about the process of writing.  Typing subjects and verbs. Stringing sentences into paragraphs, paragraphs into pages of text until the words are transformed into a story.  As a stained glass artist, I think about the process of creating a work of art.  Designing a window, cutting the glass, leading and soldering and mudding until what was once small plates of glass and strips of lead have been transformed into a piece of art.

 

Everything is a process.  And every process begins and ends in the present moment.  

Posted: April 27th, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment, writing.
Comments: 4